Sharing her truth. Sailor Brinkley Cook encouraged her followers to be more kind to their bodies after opening up about her history with disordered eating and body dysmorphia.
“I’m so f–king sick and tired of the photoshop 👏🏼 I’ve been so down on myself recently,” the 21-year-old wrote in an emotional Instagram caption alongside a handful of sunny selfies on Monday, May 25. “Crying about my cellulite, letting the fat on my body ruin my day, getting mad that I’m not as skinny as I once was. The body dysmorphia and left over [sic] eating disorder tendencies have been coming in strong.”
The Dancing With the Stars alum admitted that growth spurts and other changes to her body have been difficult to cope with as she’s transitioned from teenager to young woman. “The ‘control’ I felt I once had over it has been completely stripped away from me,” she explained, adding that social media has contributed to triggering her past insecurities.
“I go on Instagram and scroll through photos of girls that look ‘perfect’.. shiny skin with not a bump to be seen, tiny little waist and thighs that look like chopsticks,” she wrote. “And I compare myself, as if how someone on an app on my phone looks should directly correlate to how I feel about my body?”
Despite her struggles, Brinkley Cook admitted that she’s come a long way in learning how to “appreciate” her body and everything it does for her. While adjusting to life in quarantine during the COVID-19 health crisis, the New York native has been keeping up with her exercise routine, fueling herself with “beautiful food” and working hard to be more accepting of herself.
“I am so f–king LUCKY to have two legs and a healthy body that takes me through life. I’m so tired of thinking anything that makes up ME is something to be ashamed of,” she concluded. “So as most 21st century girls would do, I’m putting this out there on Instagram. … I’m proud as hell of my body! If you’re out there hating on yourself, stop!! Appreciate yourself. You’re [sic] body is so magical.”
The model previously opened up about her experience with insecurities while competing on season 28 of the ABC ballroom dance competition in late 2019.
“I grew up very doubtful of myself in a lot of ways and I went into modeling, which is, like, not — I don’t want to say that — it’s the most challenging thing to take on as someone who is quite insecure,” she told Us Weekly exclusively in September. “But you know, you find your way in it, you find your groove in it, and I ended up loving it.”
